During a night of Prohibition-era revelry, something goes terribly wrong.

Backstory

The guests are a mixed group of club staff members, entertainers, and guests at a private party held at a jazz club in 1920s New York City. It is the height of the Jazz Age, and social revolution is afoot. This is the age of Prohibition—and of bootleggers and gangsters. Club owner Felix Fontano, the son of a successful bootlegger and crime boss—and a successful businessman himself—is throwing this private party for a group of select friends. It is a night of revelry like many other nights of revelry enjoyed by this group of sophisticates, artists, and hoodlums . . . until things go horribly wrong.

This mystery is divided into two primary segments. During the first portion of the evening (Act One), the partygoers will have the opportunity to eat, drink, dance, and mingle, while enjoying the swanky atmosphere and smooth jazz of Fontano’s club, The Cat’s Meow.

Murder!

At the midpoint of the evening, one of the players makes a terrible discovery: someone has been murdered in the back supply room of the club!

Solving the Mystery

Act Two will begin with the grisly discovery of the victim’s bloody body. In the area around the body, there are signs of the struggle that occurred prior to the death. It will now be up to the guests to figure out what happened.

The guests quickly decide that the best course of action is not to call the police, but rather to conduct an investigation amongst themselves; at this point, all the guests are suspects; a formal police investigation would dredge up unsavory details of their pasts and expose them to public scandal and unwanted personal repercussions, not to mention the serious and immediate legal repercussions of being caught in a bootlegging establishment!

Characters

There are 24 primary suspects in this game, however only 15 are required to play the game. The host or hostess will play the role of the Narrator, who keeps the party on track and helps to advance the action. Read the "How To Play" section for more information on how to play an expanded game with more than 24 guests.

Male Roles

Felix Fontano, Club Owner. Felix owns The Cat’s Meow Jazz Club. He is attractive and vain, the son of famous bootlegger Frank Fontano.

Raymond Reynolds, Artist. Raymond is an old college buddy of Felix’s—an artist and something of a dilettante. He comes from old money.

Jefferson Mitchell, Stockbroker. Jefferson is a successful stockbroker working on Wall Street.

Win Wallace, Accountant. Win is the accountant for many of the guests. S/he’s reserved but knowledgeable.

Elliot Nash, Jazz Pianist. Elliot is a talented jazz pianist who often performs at the club. S/he is cool, calm, and collected.

Charlie Chambers, Jazz Bassist. Charles is a talented jazz bassist who often performs at the club. He is obsessed with all things jazz.

Brett Burgess, Waiter. Brett is a relatively new employee at The Cat’s Meow Jazz Club. S/he has hopes of one day making it big on Broadway.

Regan Richards, Waiter. Rosie is a relatively new employee at The Cat’s Meow Jazz Club. S/he has hopes of one day making it big on Broadway.

Alex Preston, Actor. Alex Preston was once on track to stardom, but alcohol got the better of him/her.

Extra Players

Investigator (male or female): Additional players have the option of playing the role of "Investigators". In this role the players are not suspects and do not have character backgrounds but can question the suspects and try to solve the mystery along with the other players.

How to Play

Follow these steps to host this mystery:

Each guest will each assume the role of a particular character
Mystery Parties involve a combination of improvisational acting, storytelling, and creative problem solving. Each guest will play the part of that character throughout the course of the game. Each character has specific personality traits, goals, secrets, and information, all of which are included in the character sheet; a big part of the fun is getting into character and taking on a new, exciting role.

A mysterious Event will occur
At some point during the party, an Event will occur that will force the players to come together in order to solve a problem or unravel a mystery. Traditionally, the Event in question will be the murder of one of the characters (as played by a guest), but the parties crafted by Playing With Murder often use this basic framework to accommodate different types of Events, thereby ensuring that your guests will be surprised and entertained (even if they are veteran murder mystery party players).

Solve the mystery!
Your guests will need to use the information that their characters know (as well as additional clues that are provided during the game) to solve the mystery or overcome the problem posed by the Event. Typically this culminates in the guests voting on the identity of the murderer, but again, different parties will have different specific goals. All of our parties also come complete with additional subgames (treasure hunts, unique character goals and special puzzles) that are guaranteed to keep the action intense and your guests motivated and focused.

Expanded Game For Large Groups

If you have extra players, there are two ways that you can accommodate everyone:

Investigator Role - Additional players have the option of playing the role of "Investigators". In this role the players are not suspects and do not have character backgrounds but can question the suspects and try to solve the mystery along with the other players. Expanded Games include a PDF guide that explains how to use the Investigator role, as well as printable character sheets and name tags for anyone that is playing an Investigator.

Multiple Groups - It is also possible to break your guests up into groups and play multiple instances of the game at the same time. The game will more or less happen the same way; the host makes announcements and each group moves their game forward simultaneously based on the host's instructions. It's good to have one assistant in each group to answer questions and facilitate gameplay within the group. This method provides a more intimate experience for your guests, who get better acquainted with a smaller group and participate in a more digestible story.

Please contact us if you'd like more information about how to run your party using the Multiple Groups method.

Both the standard and expanded games are included with the purchase of any game kit.

First time hosting a murder mystery party?

Jazz Age Jeopardy is a 119-page downloadable PDF file that you print at home. It includes the following features:

An introduction that explains the basic principles of running a mystery-party and provides specific tips on props, menu items, sound effects, casino games, and special tips to help make your party exciting, memorable and easy to run

Step-by-step instructions on how to prepare for your party

A detailed party guidebook that will walk you through the event in a simple, easy-to-understand format

Instructions on how to run the party for a large group

Nametags and character sheets for each player - the character sheets include tips on costuming and role-playing, as well special goals and information unique to each character

This was so much fun! I have a Halloween party every year, but I wanted to do something different last year, and I',m so glad I did. Everyone got into character, and I honestly was so worried it would not go smoothly as I didn't even get to read the entire game through, but I had all my instructions/narration in hand and it all worked out. Everyone complimented me on what a great hostess I was, and how well it all flowed. I am planning to do another murder mystery party this Halloween...with a different theme of course.

I've been wanting to throw a murder mystery party forever, so I figured my 25th birthday was a good reason! The kit was well thought out and thorough. My only tip would be to plan further in advance than I did. I started planning about two weeks out and it was a lot more work than I thought it would be! Overall the night was great, the only kink was that our killer cancelled last minute and I had to do some switching, but that is no reflection on the kit/script. Everyone came in costume and had a great time.

Menu Highlights:

Nothing 1920s themed for the menu. We just did a potluck style heavy hors d'oeuvres.

Theme Highlights:

I bought a balloon and lantern kit to decorate our space. Gold, black, rose gold, and white were the colors utilized throughout the room. I also made a mugshot photo booth with photo props. We used a 1920s swing Spotify playlist because I don't have iTunes and couldn't use the audio that came with the kit. Several people came with canes and we had lots of fake cigarettes floating around! I also bought a dorky inflatable trophy to award the "Best Actor/Actress".

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Dani62 03 201804 03 201807:03 PM

Game Rating:

Murder at N Ohio

Book club party. Read "Death of a Flapper" and held the party for book club girls and their significant others. It was fantastic! The guests got really into their characters with detailed costumes, accents and even homemade business cards.

We used LED candles, gold fringe, gold cups. plastic martini glasses for the champagne, and speakeasy music playing on Spotify. We also had a mug shot photobooth.

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Megan72 03 201814 03 201807:51 PM

Game Rating:

#proverncemurdermystery

This was our second party using Playing with Murder and it did not disappoint!
Everyone was very into it this year, playing their characters and dressing up.
We had 28 people, so we played with a couple investigators. Even though they didn't have a specific character to play, they still dressed up and participated in solving the murder.
Since I did not have a specific part, I played a cigarette girl. I ordered candy cigarettes on amazon- they were a huge hit!
We all had a great time and can't wait to do it again next year!

Menu Highlights:

I usually try to make the food easy, since I have so much other planning to do. I had some food catered and then just did heavy apps.

Theme Highlights:

We used the sound effects that were provided with the game. Everyone dressed up and that made it so much more fun!

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Dymond92 04 201803 04 201811:02 PM

Game Rating:

Killer Party

For my 33rd birthday I wanted to try something different, and i have always wanted to do a murder mystery party. So why not.
We had a blast. All 20 of my guests showed up in character and costume, they looked amazing.
When it was time for the murder we cut the light and the victim slipped away before the lights came back on. I gave a secret password to be able to get in ours was "2 words 1 finger" (you know like speak easy, be quiet, shut up lol).
I had a scavenger hunt to find the clues and while they did that I set up for act 2 back in the 1st room.

Menu Highlights:

We went Italian, since it was based in New York. Jello was popular so we had jello shots alcohol and non alcohol ones. Turns out my favorite cake pineapple upside down cake was a cake of choice back then so yay for me.

Theme Highlights:

I went black and gold streamers, balloons, and dim lighting. We played some jazz but mixed in so new music too, just to keep the vibe alive. I sent out my invitation via evites it allows you to text your invitation which makes thing so much easier.
When we committed the murder we had horror sound effects and when it was time to find the clues (scavenger hunt) we had a finding clues song playing.

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Jen M46 02 201816 02 201812:49 PM

Game Rating:

The Cat's Meow at the Oasis Lounge

I held the party at a local bar. It was such a hit! There were a lot of people that didn't know each other and this was the perfect way to get people to mingle. It was so fun that we're doing it again!

Menu Highlights:

We actually didn't eat, just inspired drinks!

Theme Highlights:

everyone was dressed up! I decorated tables with candles and set up a photo booth!

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MaryS15 01 201816 01 201806:47 PM

Game Rating:

Jazz Jeopardy

We were celebrating my daughter's 30th birthday. It was amazing. Most everyone came in costume and really got into their roles. The couple who played Edith and Felix really brought a lot to their roles as a couple. The was the first time most of the guests had been to a murder mystery party and they all want to do it again. Thank you for making it so easy to host this party.

Great fun for a 30th party with some rowdy 40 party people, was very easy to read and enact when necessary!!

highly recommend it !!

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www.AllAmericanWife.co70 03 201712 03 201705:09 PM

Game Rating:

Murder on Lake Street

Playing with Murder is hands down the best murder mystery company! I had so much fun planning this party! See how I planned our party here! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQMPuZI7gnQ&t=85s

The plot was great and kept everyone on edge! Candy cigaretts added to the era's atmosphere. Everyone really played into their characters, and we received so many compliments for going "all-in" on the theme! Head over to my site, www.AllAmericanWife.co to see details and photos from the evening!

We are a cafe that used this game for our Halloween Party. We added in some of our own elements to make the game more personal. Overall this game was very well put together, it made it very easy to keep such a large group of people busy and having a great time. We received nothing but compliments on the game. Will definitely be purchasing more games in the future!

Menu Highlights:

Red velvet cupcakes with chocolate butcher knives.

Theme Highlights:

We had a friend who is a phenomenal public speaker to be the Narrator and hired a local comedian to play the Club owner for the evening, this made for a very memorable event!

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Amanda199 07 201719 07 201701:07 AM

Game Rating:

The Party Everyone is Still Talking about!!

I've always wanted to host a murder mystery party and decided in a whim to do so! I was nervous about how it would go but everything went seamlessly. I'm so glad I was the narrator, I felt like I was able to make the experience so much fun for my guests while keeping the event moving forward. Highlights included the black jack table, our themed cocktails, and the costumes, ohhhhh the costumes. Everyone came dressed tonthe 9's, and we're right in character.

Menu Highlights:

Bootleg sliders, jazzy fries and hotsy totsy Oreo truffles on a stick! Bees knees, a vodka cocktail we named the pink flapper, old fashioneds, absinthe and moonshine.

Theme Highlights:

We completely moved our house around. Couches and chairs went into the kitchen, for a lounge by the bar, the dining room got gutted to be the store room, an area for mug shot pictures and a photo booth area, lots of gold, black, silver decor.

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Stephanie134 05 201715 05 201707:57 PM

Game Rating:

Community Theatre Season End Celebration

We used Jazz Age Jeopardy as a year-end party for our community theatre season. It was a complete success. We met ar a local diner and decorated it as a speakeasy with a slot where you were required to give a password before entering. The music MP3 set the mood perfectly. People did a great job on costumes. We hope to do another Playing with Murder party for New Year's Eve.

Menu Highlights:

We drank wine out of tea cups and beer out of paper bags since they were illegal at the time. Had a buffet of hot and cold snacks.

Theme Highlights:

People loved the character they played. The doctor brought a prescription pad and a booze bottle with Rx on it.

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Christy C75 03 201717 03 201710:48 PM

Game Rating:

Delayed

Had to delay our party date.
Purchased this for group of 20+ teens. Nothing else kid/family friendly looked appealing to our group of teenagers. Their prom last year was Gatsby Themed...so, they thought this would be a great continuation.
We expected to replace the alcohol references with other beverage choices...Arnold Palmer, Shirley Temple, etc. We just did not realize how many references to adultery/sex there would be in the script.
I am having to rewrite the script & recreate many of the characters to be more appropriate for our guest. We are looking forward to having this FUN party.

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Tara26 01 201727 01 201702:22 AM

Game Rating:

Jazz Age Jeopardy

My 16 guests had a blast playing Jazz Age Jeopardy for my 31st birthday. It was the classiest party we have had to date! Sending out the character sheets in advance encouraged guests to put thought into their costumes and characters. The highlight was the mingling amongst characters during Act I. Everyone is asking when the next one will be.

Menu Highlights:

Heavy appetizers were skewered and served on platters by the characters designated as staff. I bought 5 liters of liquor for Long Islands. Should have bought more Cola and Sour mix. Drinks were extremely strong and we ran out in half an hour. Looking back, perhaps this was a good thing.

Theme Highlights:

I posted costume suggestions on the facebook event page a few days prior. Used the mp3 provided with the game. I have hosted several theme parties before and most friends don't ever dressed up. This time was different. Everyone came in costume and there was stiff competition for best-dressed award.

Featured Character

From: Murder on Two WheelsName: Arnold EpicureBackground: Arnold is an old-school biker. He's seen and done most of the things these kids will see and do, but Ma's has cold beer so he puts up with them.